Personnel Services Division

Corporate Services

London Borough of Croydon

Policy on

Rewarding

Additional Duties

JUNE 2004 Assessing Rewards for Additional Duties

Has Departmental Personnel been consulted to identify whether or not additional duties need to be performed?

YES

Has the existence of a secondment opportunity been ruled out?

YES

Are the additional duties to be undertaken for a continuous period of at least 4 weeks and no longer than 6 months? (except in emergency situations Personnel have agreed).

NO

Consider employing an agency temporary worker.

YES

Are the additional duties at the same level as the employee’s normal duties and outside the remit of their normal duties (but not part of their personal development plan) (e.g. temporary project).

NO

Are the additional duties at the same level as the employee’s normal duties and outside the remit of their normal duties (but not part of their personal development plan) (e.g. temporary project).

NO

Consider employing an agency temporary worker.

YES

Do the additional duties arise from a specific higher-graded post?

NO

Will the employee undertake 100% of the duties of a specific post?

YES

Pay the employee the higher salary. Set end date in 6 months.

NO

Pay overtime/TOIL/ (or Plain Time for PT Workers up to full time hours).

YES

May be eligible for an additional payment. Does job evaluation (through Department Personnel) of the additional duties result in a grade higher than the appointee’s substantive post?

NO

Consult Departmental Personnel to re-examine options for covering workload

YES

Consult Departmental Personnel to re-examine options for covering workload

NO

Consult opportunity for developing an employee via the secondment scheme

PLEASE NOTE: This is an illustration. The full procedure must be followed.

1. **Scope**

1.1 The need for employees to take on additional duties can arise whilst a vacancy exists, during periods of absence, leave or reorganisation or because project work beyond normal requirements has to be undertaken. The purpose of following this policy and procedure is to enable a service to function effectively. It should only be used as a short term measure up to a maximum of 6 months. Management of this policy and procedure is the joint responsibility of service managers and departmental personnel officers. It should only be used if application of the secondment scheme is not a possibility. Posts of all grades are covered by this scheme. Its application is made easier by single status, which enables transition from former manual grades to admin posts.

1.2 **Secondment Scheme**

If the full duties of a post need to be covered for at least 6 months, or if the skills, knowledge and experience required for the role may be present elsewhere in the Council (e.g. for administration, finance, personnel or IT work), the Secondment scheme should be followed. The Secondment Scheme requires that the post is advertised internally and filled following the Successful Staff Selection policy. This broadens opportunities for development to all Council staff in a fair and non-discriminatory way. In some circumstances, secondment opportunities may be opened up to partner/voluntary or other government organisations.

1.3 This policy:

(a) applies to all Croydon Council employees except Chief Officers, school-based staff and teachers, to whom other arrangements apply.

(b) replaces the previous Acting Up Policy (taking on extra duties of a higher grade) and arrangements for paying Honoraria (payments made to reward employees whilst in "acting up" positions).

(c) eradicates the notion of an ‘acting up allowance’. Employees either receive the full rate of pay for a post or an additional payment for carrying out additional duties.

(d) incorporates the Council's principles of equality, transparency and management accountability.

(e) provides a flexible and efficient method to reward employees carrying out duties in excess of those contained within their job description.

1.4 **Terminology**

**Additional Duties**

Extra duties and responsibilities that differ from an employee's substantive job description. Additional Payment

Payment for performing additional duties less than 100% of another post. Not to be paid for performing 100% of the post - this should be rewarded by paying the evaluated grade for the job. Pay and conditions must be agreed before the new arrangement starts.

Secondment

A development opportunity whereby an employee may experience working at a higher level for a period of at least 6 months. Should always be considered in preference to the Rewarding Additional Duties scheme.

End Date

This is a preset end date of the arrangement, after which the line manager must review the situation and reconsider options to manage the team’s workload. Under no circumstances should employees be assimilated into a higher graded post without applying for a post advertised according to the Council’s staff selection policy.

2. Framework

2.1 It is for the line manager, in conjunction with Departmental Personnel, to decide which scheme to follow. The Secondment Scheme, wherever possible, takes priority over both the Rewarding Additional Duties scheme and the option to employ an external agency worker.

2.2 There is a step by step procedure to follow when deciding if this policy should be used, how it should be applied and when alternative policies would provide a more fitting solution (see flowchart).

3. Key Principles

3.1 The need to maintain service delivery is the main reason for implementing the Rewarding Additional Duties policy. A decision should be taken promptly and the most appropriate person selected to undertake the additional duties. The principles of equality of opportunity and the Council’s recruitment practices must apply to any decision. Particular attention should be paid to the possibility of making reasonable adjustments to enable disabled employees to be considered. A corporate fund is available to support such adaptations.

3.2 Temporary cover arrangements can offer employees an opportunity to broaden their experience, acquire new skills and may lead to a gateway to promotion. Additional duties can provide development opportunities to staff who have hitherto not received such opportunities. Staff with relevant experience should, however, be considered before others. If there are no such staff, consideration should be given to those who demonstrate the required potential to do the job.

3.3 The ability to be flexible and adaptable to change is expected of all staff and managers. Good performance where the quality and quantity of work is produced to standards and deadlines, or to defined competencies, should be the norm. Additional financial reward should not be used to recognise good performance, nor should it apply to the carrying out of duties reasonably required of the postholder, as contained in their job description.

3.4 Managers are responsible for ensuring that, in covering additional duties, staff are not overloaded in terms of their volume of work. They need to bear in mind the requirements of the Working Time Regulations and Health and Safety at Work legislation. Service objectives should be reprioritised if necessary.

3.5 Managers should ask staff to consider the risks involved by taking on any financial commitments afforded to them whilst being paid at a higher level which may not be sustainable on return to a substantive grade.

3.6 Opportunities should be offered in the first instance to a ringfenced group of all appropriate employees. The selection process must be seen to be fair and unbiased. Personnel must be involved in decisions about how to proceed when a change in status of a vacancy occurs, for example when a temporary vacancy becomes permanent.

3.7 In certain work locations, like care homes, emergency cover decisions may have to be arranged at very short notice. Ring fence decisions should be made in advance so there is a procedure to follow when, for example, a manager does not show up for work. In this way an instant decision can be made about who the most appropriate person is to take on additional duties for a very short period of time. This is one circumstance where the 4 week minimum duration can be disregarded and extra pay can be awarded to the person taking on the manager's tasks.

4. Procedure

4.1 A decision needs to be made about how to deal with the need for additional duties to be undertaken. Recruitment of external temporary cover should not automatically be decided upon in preference to utilising the skills, knowledge and experience of existing employees. The decision will involve assessment of the volume, duration (at least 4 weeks) and grade of additional duties balanced against available resources within the Council and impact on current workloads.

4.2 A short application form (see Appendix 2) will enable all interested employees to be considered to take on additional duties. Managers must be able to justify their selection against criteria where more than one applicant has expressed an interest.

4.3 When deciding how to share additional duties between various employees, managers should bear in mind the Council's Equal Opportunities Policy and the fact that some employees are only able to undertake a limited amount of additional hours (eg working parents). Consideration should always be given to the impact additional work could have on different categories of workers. 5. **Impact of Sickness Absence or Ill-Health**

5.1 Where sickness absence during such an arrangement gives rise to operational difficulties the primary concern is effective and efficient service delivery. Another employee can be selected (using the same selection process) to carry out the duties. The first arrangement should be allowed to run its course. Where applicable the Corporate sickness and ill-health procedure should be followed to measure the impact of carrying out additional duties has had on the employee.

6. **Duties at the Same Level**

6.1 If the duties are at the same level as those of the substantive post (as measured under the Job Evaluation Scheme) and simply reflect an increase in workload volume, a calculation should be made of the additional hours which need to be worked before identifying who is to do them. Extra hours should be rewarded either at the agreed overtime rate relating to the substantive post (for posts up to and including PO6) or by time off in lieu (or by plain time for a part-time worker up to full-time hours). It should be clarified and agreed in advance when additional hours are to be worked and how the outcome of these activities will be measured. This should be completed by the line manager and Departmental Personnel before the arrangement commences.

6.2 If staff are working to their full capacity and take on same-grade additional duties, e.g. if additional duties have arisen from a project or to provide cover for an absent colleague of the same grade, part of their substantive post will need to be covered in an alternative way or objectives may need to be re-prioritised if additional hours are to be avoided.

7. **Duties at a Higher Level**

7.1 Where an employee is required to undertake additional duties and responsibilities which are calculated under the Job Evaluation Scheme at a higher level than their substantive post, an additional payment should be paid. This can apply to situations involving the take up of either some or all of the duties of a more senior post. If only some of the higher level duties are to be covered, the depth and breadth of the duties and responsibilities should be assessed by departmental personnel using the Job Evaluation Scheme.

7.2 Where an employee undertakes the full duties of a higher graded post, certain terms and conditions related to that post will apply to that person for the duration of the arrangement. This will not affect the rights of the substantive postholder. Such measures will be decided on a case by case basis and made known before employees are invited to apply.

7.3 Absence due to maternity leave or sickness (especially when there is a disability related reason for it) will not trigger an early review of the arrangement (which could be deemed discriminatory). The arrangement should continue until its pre-arranged end date is reached (a maximum of 6 months).

7.4 If an annual pay award or increment becomes relevant during the period, it should also be implemented at the higher salary level. This will ensure that the employee is paid the correct rate for the job they are doing. 7.5 Where additional duties are not linked to a specific senior post, Job Evaluation of the extra duties alone may result in a grade higher than the substantive post, resulting in entitlement to additional payment. Job Evaluation must never be used in this context to upgrade a person permanently, however; only to evaluate the temporary level of the post.

7.6 The employee must be reminded of their substantive status and that the temporary arrangement is not a permanent promotion.

8. Calculating Additional Payments

8.1 There are two dimensions to the calculation: the percentage of the total job performed and the duration of the arrangement. If 100% of the post is being covered, the full rate of pay for the higher graded post must be paid. Where only part of a post is being covered, the difference in salary between the substantive post and the lowest spinal column point of the more senior grade should be paid. The additional payment will be equivalent to at least one spinal column point if the salary scales of the two posts overlap. In other circumstances it will be the equivalent to the difference between the substantive salary and the first spinal point of the higher grade e.g. employee who is on scp 34 at grade SO2 and undertakes duties of a PO1 post will be granted an additional payment equivalent to the difference between scp 35 and 34.

8.2 Please see 'Guidelines for calculating Additional Payments', the agreement to be signed by the employee and the application form for an additional payment.

9. Recording and Monitoring

9.1 A record form for an additional payment (Appendix 1) should be completed and a copy should be kept on the employee's personal file.

9.2 All such arrangements must be monitored periodically by Departmental Personnel and Personnel Services to determine access rates for different groups, review the length and reasons for such arrangements and ensure consistency of application. Departments will complete a monitoring sheet for each employee who applies and forward an annual statistical report to Personnel Services. This will show all rewarding additional duties arrangements, including the grades of substantive postholders, grades of posts being covered, time period involved and percentage of duties covered. If a need for continuation beyond the originally agreed period arises, Departmental Personnel must review the reasons for the cover and consider a permanent solution to the vacancy. All such cases must be included in the annual report to Personnel Services.

Departments will need to justify new, ending and continuing arrangements and clearly identify funding available to support them. Application To Take On Additional Duties

Name: Department: Current Job Title: Current Grade: Section: Location: Contact No: Post (or Part Post) applied for: Grade:

Using the attached Job Description and Person Specification, please show below why and how you meet the shortlisting criteria for the post. Only those applicants who meet these criteria will be shortlisted.

Signed (applicant): Date:

You may attach additional sheets if necessary

# APPENDIX 2

## RECORD OF ADDITIONAL PAYMENT ARRANGEMENT

Submitted by: Tel: Date:

Department: Job Title:

To be completed by the relevant Line Manager with advice from Departmental Personnel

| Department: | Division/Section: | |-------------|-------------------| | Additional duties/post to be covered: | | Status: | | (e.g. temporary, permanent, fixed term) | | Grade of additional duties/post: | | Name of Recipient: | | Employee Number: | | Substantive Job Title and Grade: | | Gender: | Ethnic Origin: | Disabled | Y/N? | | Brief outline of situation: | | What alternative solutions have been considered (Explain why alternatives were rejected): | | Description of work that needs to be covered: | | Method used for selecting the individual: (eg. breadth of pool, ring-fenced group selected, staff selection procedure followed, etc.) | | Start date: | End date: | What would be the consequences if the additional responsibilities were not covered?

Additional payment proposed and basis of calculation (Specify whether to be paid as a lump sum or monthly)

Approved by: (Chief Officer)

Name:

Designation:

Signature: (Chief Officer)

Date:

A copy of this form to be kept on the postholder's personal file. **EQUAL OPPORTUNITIES MONITORING**

The Council is required to monitor all its Personnel Policies and Procedures to identify any possible concerns about unfair treatment to particular groups of staff. You are therefore asked to provide the following information to the monitoring process. How you complete this form has no connection to the evaluation of your application in any way.

| Question | Options | |--------------------------------------------------------------------------|-------------------------------------------------------------------------| | Do you consider yourself to have a disability (i.e. a physical or mental impairment which has a substantial and long-term adverse effect on your ability to carry out normal day-to-day activities)? | Yes ☐ No ☐ | | If you have a disability what equipment, adaptations or adjustments to working conditions would assist you in carrying out your duties? | | | What is your current Grade? | | | What Grade is the post/part post you are applying to cover? | | | For office use only: | successful ☐ unsuccessful ☐ | | Outcome of application | | | What is your religion? | | | Please tick one box only. | | | None ☐ 1 Christian ☐ 2 Buddhist ☐ 3 Hindu ☐ 4 Muslim ☐ 5 Sikh ☐ 6 Jewish ☐ 7 Other ☐ 90 | | | If “other” please specify:- | | | What is your gender? | Male ☐ Female ☐ | | Which of the following best describes your ethnic origin? Please tick one box only. | | | (a) White: British ☐ 20 Irish ☐ 21 Other ☐ 22 | | | (b) Mixed: | | | White & Black Caribbean ☐ 30 | | | White & Black African ☐ 31 | | | White & Asian ☐ 32 | | | Other Mixed Group ☐ 33 | | | (c) Asian or Asian British: | | | Indian ☐ 40 | Pakistani ☐ 41 | | Bangladeshi ☐ 42 | Other Asian ☐ 43 | | (d) Black or Black British: | | | Caribbean ☐ 50 | African ☐ 51 | | Other Black background ☐ 52 | | | (e) Chinese or other ethnic group: | | | Chinese ☐ 60 | Any other ethnic group ☐ 70 | | If “other” please specify:- | | | What is your Sexuality? | | | Please tick one box only. | | | Heterosexual ☐ Gay Man or Lesbian ☐ | | | Bisexual ☐ Prefer not to say | | | In which Department do you work? | | | Education ☐ Executive Office ☐ Planning and Transportation ☐ | | | Finance ☐ Environmental, Cultural and Sports Services ☐ | | | Housing ☐ Corporate Services ☐ Social Services ☐ | | GUIDELINES FOR PAYING ADDITIONAL PAYMENTS

1. KEEPING RECORDS

All arrangements made for additional payments must be recorded on the Council’s Personnel and Payroll system. Where 100% of a higher graded post is being undertaken, the first action should be to transfer the employee from their substantive post to the higher graded position. The end date should be recorded on page 703 of IMPPS. This will ensure that all pay and benefits relating to that post are automatically awarded. It will also remind Departmental Personnel when the situation ends.

If only some of the duties of a post are being covered or additional work is of a project nature, it is possible to record this as a temporary arrangement on page 780 of IMPPS where there is a 'Notes' facility on screen. This will produce a reminder report in a similar way.

An end date should be set in advance, recorded and adhered to. The employee will revert back to their substantive post on the Personnel and Payroll System after the end date.

2. CALCULATING ADDITIONAL PAYMENTS - PERCENTAGES OF HIGHER GRADED POSTS

The following examples show how additional payments may be calculated.

Payment should be based on the lowest scale point within the higher grade. Code 061 should be entered on to screen 600 of IMPPS to ensure the right amount of pay is paid. (N.B. This code should not be used for recording any other type of allowance. This will need to be re-calculated every time a pay award or increment becomes effective.)

Examples (based on 2002 pay rates). All figures have been rounded down here for easier understanding. Actual calculations need to be exact.

1. A PO2 (Scp 35) post becomes vacant and will take 12 weeks to fill. Two SO1 post holders (at 29 and 31) will share 50% of the duties of the PO2 post, the remainder being covered by more senior colleagues. -

   i. Difference between scp 29 and scp 35 = £2,583 Additional payment = 12/52 x 2,583 x 25% = £149

   ii. Difference between scp 31 and scp 35 = £2,472 Additional payment = 12/52 x 2,472 x 25% = £142

Although the two SO1 post holders are paid different amounts, this is consistent because it reflects the different additional effort required as well as the difference between their substantive grade and those of the higher graded duties.

2. A PO8 (scp 54) post-holder has been on sick leave for 4 weeks and is expected to be away for approximately a further 4 months.

A PO4 post-holder (on scp 44) has been covering 75% of the duties of the PO8 post for the past 4 weeks and will assume the full duties for the remainder of the sick leave - Difference between scp 44 and scp 54 = £9,867 Additional payment = 1/12 x 9,867 x 75% = £616 Plus 1/12 x 9,867 = £822 per month until PO8 returns to work.

3. SAME GRADE ADDITIONAL DUTIES

In cases of increased duties of the same grade (for example temporary project work, covering a vacant post), Departmental Personnel should consult the Head of Personnel Services to discuss the possibility of additional payment.

4. ADDITIONAL PAYMENT AGREEMENT

This statement is to be incorporated into a letter to the employee receiving an additional payment. It is to be signed by any member of Council staff who will be receiving an additional payment for taking on additional duties at a more senior level than their substantive post.

"I understand that this arrangement will end after a maximum of six months. Management have the discretion to end the arrangement earlier giving one month's notice. I may also end it in the same way.

I understand that the maximum length of entitlement to any enhanced terms and conditions will be for the duration of my taking on additional duties, and in any event will last up to a maximum of 6 months."

Name: Signature:

Date:

Reason for Additional Payment:

End Date: Appendix 5

Ending Acting Up and Honoraria Arrangements

Is the employee covering a vacant post?

Are they receiving an Honorarium or Additional Payment?

Are they covering the full duties of the post?

All arrangements to be reviewed/given an end date by 31 December 2003

End the arrangement by 31 March 2004 & review method of fulfilling the post/duties long term/permanently if necessary

Job Evaluate the extra duties and reward them appropriately